Daytime running lights.

[Bri]

Yet the sidelights on the front of your vehicle are not bright enough for you to be seen, especially if another car has partially frosted or misted windows which at this time of the year is common. He cannot see you if you only have sidelights on - you are invisible to him. Put your headlights on - and then you can be seen.

Is this rocket science?

Certainly not

Busy dual carriageway, bright enough to see the other cars and for them to see you without having headlights on. Slightly dull / drizzly rain, you can still see the other cars both in front and behind you but your rear lights are on making you more visible. Nothing wrong with that is there?

If it's dark / dusk / peeing down then headlights all the way.

 

[Conscript]

So you are one of the sidelight users. What is your rationale for using sidelights? Have you not noticed other cars on the road using sidelights and seen how ineffectual they are compared to cars with headlights on?

Sure. As mentioned, the rear sidelights come on. Also, sidelights help you be seen but because they don't do much to illuminate anything, it's less likely to dazzle other drivers. And I think sidelights do make it easier to be seen.

It's just an intermediary between having headlights on and having no lights at all, which is ideal for when its still not dark but visibility is reduced slightly. You don't the headlights to see you are going, but it does help to have running lights to help you be seen.

 

[dirtydog]

Certainly not

Busy dual carriageway, bright enough to see the other cars and for them to see you without having headlights on. Slightly dull / drizzly rain, you can still see the other cars both in front and behind you but your rear lights are on making you more visible. Nothing wrong with that is there?

If it's dark / dusk / peeing down then headlights all the way.

Have you ever tried to see other cars with sidelights on, when your windows are misted up? And don't say the windows shouldn't be misted - the fact is that it happens, if not to you then to the car about to pull out in front of you who hasn't seen you because you only have your sidelights on.

 

[dirtydog]

Sure. As mentioned, the rear sidelights come on. Also, sidelights help you be seen but because they don't do much to illuminate anything, it's less likely to dazzle other drivers. And I think sidelights do make it easier to be seen.

You thinking it doesn't make it true though unfortunately. Some cars' sidelights are brighter than others, but they are all feeble compared to headlights and a car with misted windows will NOT see you if you only have sidelights on.

Some cars also have tiny, pinprick sized sidelights which are utterly useless for anything except parking - which funnily enough is what they are for!

 

[Bri]

Have you ever tried to see other cars with sidelights on, when your windows are misted up? And don't say the windows shouldn't be misted - the fact is that it happens, if not to you then to the car about to pull out in front of you who hasn't seen you because you only have your sidelights on.

I'm talking about where 75% of the people don't have any lights on at all, no sidelights, no headlights, nothing. Are you seriously suggesting that I am less visible with my sidelights on than with no lights at all? If the situation warrants headlights then I will use them.

 

[Conscript]

You thinking it doesn't make it true though unfortunately. Some cars' sidelights are brighter than others, but they are all feeble compared to headlights and a car with misted windows will NOT see you if you only have sidelights on.

Some cars also have tiny, pinprick sized sidelights which are utterly useless for anything except parking - which funnily enough is what they are for!

If someone's windows are so misted that any car without its headlights on is virtually invisible, then that someone should seriously consider stopping and waiting for the windows to clear.

Yes I know we all have misted windows form time to time, but if it's misted that badly then I think said person should stop and consider whether driving with such poor visibility is safe, rather than shifting the blame to everyone who doesn't have his headlights on if its during the day, etc.

 

[L0rdMike]

against!
if you can't see a car in daylight, then get of the road. Also it's used for bikers, who you can miss in daylight. Having there lights on brings attention. But if everyone has them on it defeats the point.

Ditto

 

[dirtydog]

I'm talking about where 75% of the people don't have any lights on at all, no sidelights, no headlights, nothing. Are you seriously suggesting that I am less visible with my sidelights on than with no lights at all? If the situation warrants headlights then I will use them.

Okay, what about when 50%+ have headlights on - the other 50% are stupid not to follow IMO.

As for AcidHell2 "if you can't see a car without headlights on, get off the road" - all well and good, but it doesn't help you when someone pulls out in front of you because you drove at dusk without headlights on.

I finish work about 7am when it is dawn, and currently have to turn right onto a busy fast-moving road. It is not so easy to pick out cars, particularly dark-coloured ones, against a backdrop of a black road and a dark sky who don't have their headlights on. People who drive with sidelights on - please, just don't do it, because it is stupid. Think about what you are doing. Headlights or nothing.

 

[Lopéz]

I'm talking about lights in the bumpers, like on the 205GTI and many other cars. They're for really bad lighting conditions, not driving up my arse and blinding me at 3 o clock on a Wednesday.

Front fog lights?
/gumpy old man rant

I don't understand why people have them on when it's not foggy. It makes me want to follow them home and smash the bulbs with a hammer.

205 GTI's do not have front fog lights.

 

[TerryWogan]

Yeah they're "driving lights". But you get the jist. It's not actually possible to put them on without your full beams, but I'm talking about the ones that you can.

 

[Bri]

Okay, what about when 50%+ have headlights on - the other 50% are stupid not to follow IMO.

If 50%+ have their headlights on, I have more than likely already got mine on. We're not going to agree here, there are, in my opinion, some situations where sidelights are useful and more than adequate. The rest of the time, I would use headlights anyway.

 

[BigglesPiP]

They're turning us into Sweden.